The Rajasthan Camel (Prohibition of Slaughter and Regulation of Temporary Migration or Export) Act, 2015, was passed by the Rajasthan government in February 2016. The bill was aimed to contain the steady decline in camel population in the state. The population of camels has also declined sharply in India. According to the livestock census of 1992, there were around 7,50,000 camels in India. In 2012, the number fell to only 3,30,000, which indicated that there was a decrease of more than 56 per cent. As per the provisional data of the 20th Livestock Census of Rajasthan, there were around 2.12 lakh camels in the state in 2019, much less than the figure in 2012. Since a majority of the camel population is found in Rajasthan, the Rajasthan government declared the camel as the state animal in 2014, besides the chinkara (about 1,00,000 camels in India and 80,000 in the Thar Desert in 2001).
Ever since the law came into existence, camel herders, rearers, and breeders in Rajasthan have been carrying out a sustained opposition and protest against the law. They have been demanding amendments to the act as their business has suffered due to the inability to sell camel to buyers from outside the state. In the Pushkar cattle fair in 2021, which was not held in the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most camel rearers and breeders could not sell their camels because of the stringent law.
Some Highlights of the Act
- The act clearly states that no person shall be allowed to slaughter or cause to be slaughtered or offer or cause to be offered for slaughter any camel.
- No person should possess, sell or transport camel meat and camel meat products in any form.
- For temporary migration of camel from the famine and scarcity affected areas of Rajasthan, the rearer shall apply to the ‘competent authority’ having jurisdiction over such area stating the circumstances necessitating the proposed migration. Along with this, the number of camels, name of the state to which the migration is proposed, and the period for which the permit is needed, are required. If the person does not bring back the camel into Rajasthan after the specified period, he shall be penalised according to the law.
- For export of camel from Rajasthan for agricultural or dairy farming purposes or for participation in an animal fair, prior permission from the ‘competent authority’ is required. Before granting the permission, the competent authority should also ensure that such an export, in no way, reduces the number of such camel below the level of actual requirement of the local area.
- Whenever the camels are transported by any means of transport in furtherance of the object of commission of any offence, the transporter shall be guilty of abetment of the said offence and shall be liable for the same punishment.
- Whenever camels are seized as a result of search or inspection, the custody of the seized camels, pending final disposal of the case, may be entrusted by the ‘competent authority’ to any recognised voluntary agency working for the welfare of animals.
- Whoever contravenes or attempts to contravene or abets the contravention of the provisions of the act may be subjected to rigorous imprisonment and/or fine according to various sections, depending upon the offence.
- Punishment shall be levied according to various sections if anyone is found causing bodily pain, disease, or infirmity to any camel.
- Whoever causes grievous injuries to a camel, such as emasculation, permanent privation of sight or hearing, fracture or dislocation of a bone or tooth, or any hurt that could endanger the life or which could cause the camel severe bodily pain making it ultimately unfit, shall face rigorous punishment and fine as per the offence.
- Competent authorities are authorised persons who are deemed to be public servants. They shall have the power to enter and inspect places. The camel rearers should allow the competent authority access to the place, whenever it is necessary. Also, the camel rearer is supposed to answer to the best of his knowledge, any questions put forth to him by the competent authority.
Why this Act
Several cases of intentional killings of camels and their offspring were prevalent in Rajasthan. Also, a large number of camels were transported to other states for the purpose of slaughter. Recurrent famines and scarcity of fodder for the animal worsened the situation. So, the Rajasthan government decided to enact a law taking into consideration the social, cultural, and economic usefulness and contribution of camels which prohibits the slaughter of camels and the export of such animals. The law also regulates the temporary migration or export of such animals.
Impact of the Act in Rajasthan
The Raika and Raibari communities have been the traditional camel keepers of Rajasthan. With the implementation of this law, they found it increasingly difficult to sustain their herds. They found it hard to go through the process of getting permission to transport camels outside the state as per the restrictions imposed by the act as it takes months for the breeders to get permission from the competitive authority. As a result, many buyers from other states such as Haryana and Punjab, who used to buy camels from Rajasthan for agricultural purposes, stopped buying camels ever since the 2015 law was passed.
Faced with a shrinking market, regulations on camel export and sales, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pushkar cattle fair, state’s largest camel market also saw a substantial decrease in buyers and sellers. The legislation and the fear of legal action caused many camel buyers to keep away from the annual Pushkar fair.
Increase in irrigation and the consequent rise in intensive agriculture led to a drop in the availability of grazing lands for the camels. The Supreme Court’s ban on all human uses, in sanctuaries led to the loss of traditional grazing grounds. Therefore, the breeders used to migrate to parts of Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh in search of fodder for their cattle. Now, the act has put a ban on that. Consequently, camels became chronically hungry and fell prey to diseases.
The one and only National Research Centre on Camel (NRCC) in Bikaner, Rajasthan, has developed camel milk and milk products as a new economic incentive for the camel breeding community. The NRCC has established that camel milk is a more complete food than cow or buffalo milk. The milk has proven benefits in the treatment of Type 1 diabetes, hypertension, tuberculosis, and even autism. Here also, lack of recognition from authorities stalled the development of this product into a full-fledged business model.
A group of 20 camel breeders protested in Sadri in Pali district in August 2021, demanding that they be allowed to sell camels to buyers from outside the state as smuggling of camels has increased due to the restrictions.
According to the data from the Animal Husbandry Department, 15,460 camels were brought to the Pushkar cattle fair in 2001. In 2011, the number got reduced to 8,238 and in 2019 only 3,298 camels were brought to the fair. In 2021, about 2,327 camels were brought to the fair, out of which only 426 were sold, and the bulk of the buyers were from within the state. The prices of the camels too have come down heavily as there are hardly any takers.
Rajasthan Government’s Stand on the Act 2015
In September, 2021, the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Minister told the State Assembly that in the last three decades, camel population has consistently declined though 84.43 per cent of the total camel population in the country are found in Rajasthan.
Therefore, the state government formed a ministerial sub-committee to look into the issues and plans to make some amendments in the act to enable migration of camels and to ensure that farmers who have stopped keeping camels after the law was passed, are encouraged to do so once again.
Advocate Prateek Kasliwal, appointed as amicus curiae by the Rajasthan high court to assist the court in this regard, has also called for necessary amendment to the 2015 act.
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